The network will offer internet download speeds of up to 1.2 Gbps
Orange has launched its first commercial 5G network in Romania. The initial launch is located in three of its main cities – Bucharest, Cluj-Napoca and Iasi. Other cities are expected to follow throughout next year and beyond.
Ramon Fernandez, CEO Delegate of Orange in charge of Finance, Performance and Europe, explained that Romania was a natural choice to mark the official initiation of Orange’s 5G rollout, commenting that over the past 22 years, the company has invested more than €3.5 billion in its Romanian operations.
He added, “Today’s 5G launch, alongside new innovations like eSIM and Number Sharing, will serve as key use cases for further development and underpins the Group’s ambitions to deliver an unmatched experience to our customers as we begin our migration towards the next generation of networks.”
According to a press release, the network will offer internet download speeds of up to 1.2 Gbps and average download speeds of 600Mbps. In addition, a complete package of premium services and devices has been designed to enhance the 5G experience for customers including unlimited internet, with over 9 GB for mobile roaming within the EU, unlimited voice calls and SMS nationally and in roaming.
Orange Romania has been significantly involved in Europe’s Horizon 2020 research and development projects: MATILDA, SliceNet, 5G-EVE and 5G-VICTORI, contributing to the development and standardization of 5G technology.
While Romania is Orange’s first commercial 5G network within its footprint, Orange is making significant 5G progress elsewhere. In September, for example, Ericsson and Orange Polska launched a 5G test network in Warsaw, Poland that included 9 sites in the Warsaw district of Ochota and Powiśle.
And in August, the telecom announced that its operations in France are in the “pre-commercial phase,” and that Orange is in the process of gradually deploying 5G on existing 4G sites across the country.
Romania’s first 5G commercial service was launched in July by pay-tv and fixed internet provider DIGI in parts of Bucharest. DIGI deployed Ericsson’s 3GPP standards-based 5G New Radio (NR) hardware and software on top of its 4G network, enabling customers to connect to both 4G and 5G simultaneously to get the best possible experience even in crowded locations.
